David A. Ochmanek

David A. Ochmanek
Senior International/Defense Researcher
Washington Office

Education

M.P.A. in international relations, Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University; B.S. in international affairs and political science, United States Air Force Academy

Media Resources

This researcher is available for interviews.

To arrange an interview, contact the RAND Office of Media Relations at (310) 451-6913, or email media@rand.org.

More Experts

Overview

David Ochmanek is a senior international/defense researcher at the RAND Corporation. From 2009 until 2014 he was the deputy assistant secretary of defense for Force Development.

Prior to joining the Office of the Secretary of Defense, he was a senior defense analyst and director of the Strategy and Doctrine Program for RAND Project AIR FORCE, where he worked from 1985 until 1993, and again from 1995 until 2009. From 1993 until 1995, Ochmanek served as deputy assistant secretary of defense for Strategy.

Prior to joining RAND, he was a member of the Foreign Service of the United States, serving from 1980 to 1985. From 1973 to 1978, he was an officer in the United States Air Force.

Ochmanek is a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy and Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. 

Research Focus

Previous Positions

Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Development; Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy

Recent Projects

  • Assessing Trends in Relative U.S. Overmatch, 2000 -2035
  • Analytic Support to the Air Force Warfighting Integration Capability
  • A New Force Planning and Sizing Construct for DoD
  • Airpower and Moscow's Strategy in the Near Abroad

Selected Publications

Thomas Hamilton and David Ochmanek, Operating Low-Cost, Reusable, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in Contested Environments, RAND Corporation (RR-4407), 2020

Ochmanek, David A., Restoring U.S. Power Projection Capabilities: Responding to the 2018 National Defense Strategy, RAND Corporation (PE-260-AF), 2018

Ochmanek, David A., Improving Force Development Within the U.S. Department of Defense: Diagnosis and Potential Prescriptions, RAND Corporation (PE-302-RC), 2018

With Peter A. Wilson, Brenna Allen, John Speed Meyers, and Carter Price, U.S. Military Capabilities and Forces for a Dangerous World, RAND Corporation (RR-1782), 2017

Ochmanek, David A., Sustaining U.S. Leadership in the Asia-Pacific Region: Why a Strategy of Direct Defense Against Antiaccess and Area Denial Threats Is Desirable and Feasible, RAND Corporation (PE-142-OSD), 2015

Languages

German

Recent Media Appearances

Interviews: CTV News (Canada); Defence Matters; Foreign Policy; KTRH-AM Online; Sky News

Commentary

Publications